A recent lawsuit filed against a high-profile North Carolina sports and entertainment company may involve one employee’s allegation of sex discrimination, but employment lawyers say the case reflects a broader shift in how Title VII claims are being evaluated as courts, federal agencies and employers navigate rapidly changing discrimination law.
The lawsuit, filed in Mecklenburg County Superior Court by Charlotte attorney Josh Van Kampen on behalf of former Charlotte Football Club executive Dustin Swinehart, alleges Tepper Sports & Entertainment, the parent company of the football club and the Carolina Panthers, has engaged in a pattern of discrimination against men while retaining and promoting women accused of more serious workplace misconduct.
While the lawsuit has made headlines across the Carolinas and beyond, attorneys say that it is reflective of a larger, evolving employment law landscape shaped by the U.S. Supreme Court’s 2025 decision in Ames v. Ohio Department of Youth Services — a case that clarified how Title VII discrimination claims brought by majority-group employees should be evaluated — and shifting enforcement priorities at the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission.
In Ames, plaintiff Marlean Ames, a heterosexual woman employed by the Ohio Department of Youth Services, alleged she was denied a promotion and later demoted because of her sexual orientation. Lower courts dismissed her claims after concluding she failed to satisfy the “background...
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